initiate

English

Pronunciation

• (verb) IPA^(key): /ɪˈnɪʃ.i.eɪt/, /ɪˈnɪʃ.ɪ.eɪt/

  • Audio (Southern England):

    (file)

• (noun, adjective) IPA^(key): /ɪˈnɪʃ.i.ət/, /ɪˈnɪʃ.ɪ.ət/

  • Audio (Southern England):

    (file)

• Hyphenation: ini‧ti‧ate

Etymology 1

Borrowed from Latin initiātus, perfect passive participle of initiō (“to begin, originate”) (see -ate (verb-forming suffix)), from initium (“a beginning”) + -ō (verb-forming suffix), from initus (“an entrance, coming in, approach”) + -ium, from ineō + -tus, from in- + eō (“to go”). Cognate with French initier.

Verb

initiate (third-person singular simple present initiates, present participle initiating, simple past and past participle initiated)

1. (transitive) To begin; to start.
   • 1860, Isaac Taylor, “(please specify the page)”, in Ultimate Civilization and Other Essays, London: Bell and Daldy […], →OCLC:

     How are changes of this sort to be initiated?

   • 1978, David Dhlalangami Maforo, Black-white Relations in Kenya Game Policy, page 5:

     Indigenous people, such as agriculturists, hunters, and pastoralists initiated a system of totemism and tabooism which in essence was a natural law against killing and eating certain animals.

   • 2011, Jim Baggott, The First War of Physics, Pegasus Books, →ISBN:

     A U235 bomb would therefore need to incorporate a gun weighing ten tons. Then there was the question of initiating or triggering the bomb.

   • 2014, David L. Elliott, Ultraviolet Laser Technology and Applications, page 320:

     Prior to firing the laser, a surgeon can preilluminate the area to be cut or ablated, enlarge or reduce the area, shape, or size, and then initiate the UV laser pulses for the actual ablation.

   • 2021 February 24, Encyclopedia of Virology, Academic Press, →ISBN, page 43:

     With the exception of anelloviruses, bidnaviruses, spiraviruses, and some inoviruses, the replicative protein of ssDNA viruses is the so-called HUH endonuclease that cuts genomic DNA at a specific site and initiates rolling circle (or rolling hairpin) replication.

2. (transitive) To instruct in the rudiments or principles; to introduce.
   • 1653, Henry More, An Antidote against Atheisme, or An Appeal to the Natural Faculties of the Minde of Man, whether There Be Not a God, London: […] Roger Daniel, […], →OCLC:

     Divine Providence would only initiate and enter mankind into the useful knowledge of her, leaving the rest to employ our industry.

   • 1693, [John Locke], “§94”, in Some Thoughts Concerning Education, London: […] A[wnsham] and J[ohn] Churchill, […], →OCLC:

     to initiate his pupil in any part of learning

3. (transitive) To confer membership on; especially, to admit to a secret order with mysterious rites or ceremonies.
   • 1738–1741, William Warburton, The Divine Legation of Moses […], volume (please specify |volume=I, II.1, or II.2), London: […] Fletcher Gyles, […], →OCLC:

     The Athenians believed that he who was initiated and instructed in the mysteries would obtain celestial honour after death.

   • 1714 August 15 (Gregorian calendar), [Joseph Addison], “WEDNESDAY, August 4, 1714”, in The Spectator, number 576; republished in Alexander Chalmers, editor, The Spectator; a New Edition, […], volume VI, New York, N.Y.: D[aniel] Appleton & Company, 1853, →OCLC:

     He was initiated into half a dozen clubs before he was one and twenty.

     The spelling has been modernized.

4. (intransitive) To do the first act; to perform the first rite; to take the initiative.
   • 1725–1726, Homer, “Book 3”, in [William Broome, Elijah Fenton, Alexander Pope], transl., The Odyssey of Homer. […], London: […] Bernard Lintot, →OCLC:

     The king himself initiates to the power; Scatters with quivering hand the sacred flour, And the stream sprinkles.

Synonyms

• (to begin): commence, institute

Antonyms

• (antonym(s) of “to begin”): stop, end, cease

  • (to end temporarily) pause, halt, suspend
  • (to end incompletely) discontinue
  • (to end completely) finish, conclude, complete

Derived terms

• initiatee
• initiatic
• noninitiated
• noninitiating
• overinitiate
• overinitiated
• photoinitiate
• photoinitiated
• preinitiated
• reinitiate
• self-initiate
• uninitiate
• uninitiated

Related terms

• initiable
• initial
• initialism
• initialize
• initials
• initiation
• initiative
• initiator

Translations

to begin; to start

• Bulgarian: запо́чвам (bg) impf (zapóčvam), поставям начало (postavjam načalo)
• Czech: iniciovat (cs)
• Dutch: beginnen (nl), starten (nl), aanvangen (nl), initiëren (nl)
• Esperanto: iniciati
• Finnish: käynnistää (fi), aloittaa (fi), panna alulle
• French: commencer (fr), démarrer (fr), initier (fr)
• German: beginnen (de)
• Ido: iniciar (io)
• Italian: iniziare (it)
• Japanese: 始める (ja) (hajimeru), 取り掛かる (ja) (torikakaru), 開始する (kaishi suru)
• Norwegian: sette i gang
• Persian: آغازیدن (fa), آغازاندن
• Russian: инициировать (ru) impf (iniciirovatʹ)
• Swedish: initiera (sv), inleda (sv), påbörja (sv), sätta igång (sv)

to instruct in the rudiments

• Bulgarian: посвещавам (bg) (posveštavam)
• Finnish: johdattaa (fi), opastaa (fi)
• German: einführen (de)
• Italian: introdurre (it)
• Polish: wtajemniczać (pl) impf, wtajemniczyć (pl) pf

to confer membership on

• Bulgarian: въвеждам (bg) (vǎveždam), лансирам (bg) (lansiram)
• Czech: zasvětit
• Esperanto: inici
• Finnish: vihkiä (fi)
• Greek:

  Ancient: τελίσκω (telískō)

• Italian: iniziare (it), inserire (it)
• Latin: initiō
• Swedish: uppta (sv)

The translations below need to be checked and inserted above into the appropriate translation tables. See instructions at Wiktionary:Entry layout § Translations.

Translations to be checked

• Chinese:

  Mandarin: 伊始^{(please verify)} 开始 (zh) (kāishǐ), ^{(please verify)} 着手 (zh) (zhuóshǒu)

• Esperanto: ^{(please verify)} ekestigi
• Italian: ^{(please verify)} iniziare (it), ^{(please verify)} cominciare (it), ^{(please verify)} presentare (it)
• Latin: ^{(please verify)} initio

To do the first act

• Arabic: بَادَرَ (bādara)
• Kapampangan: panimunan

See also

• resume (to begin where one left off)

Etymology 2

From a substantivization of the adjective, see -ate (noun-forming suffix) and Etymology 1 for more. Cognate with French initié (“an initiate, neophyte”).

Noun

initiate (plural initiates)

2. A new member of an organization.
4. One who has been through a ceremony of initiation.
6. One who is oriented in and familiar with a topic or subject; especially, one who is an expert in it.

   Antonyms: noninitiate, novice

   Coordinate terms: expert, nonexpert; layperson, amateur, dilettante; insider, old hand; journeyman, master; learner, student, teacher

Translations

A new member of an organization

• Arabic: عضو جديد
• Bulgarian: новопосветен m (novoposveten)
• Chinese:

  Mandarin: 新成员

• Dutch: beginner (nl) m
• Esperanto: ^{(please verify)} adepto (eo)
• Finnish: tulokas (fi), uusi jäsen
• German: Eingeweihter (de) m, Eingeweihte (de) f, Initiierter m, Initiierte f
• Italian: novizio (it)

One who has been through a ceremony of initiation

• Armenian: հաղորդյալ (haġordyal), միստ (mist)
• Czech: zasvěcenec
• Dutch: ingewijde (nl) m or f
• Finnish: tulokas (fi)
• French: initié (fr)
• German: Eingeweihter (de) m, Eingeweihte (de) f
• Greek:

  Ancient: μύστης m (mústēs)

• Hungarian: beavatott (hu)
• Italian: iniziato (it)
• Polish: wtajemniczony m

Etymology 3

Borrowed from Latin initiātus, see -ate (adjective-forming suffix) and Etymology 1 for more.

Adjective

initiate (comparative more initiate, superlative most initiate)

1. (obsolete) Unpracticed, untried, new.
   • c. 1606 (date written), William Shakespeare, “The Tragedie of Macbeth”, in Mr. William Shakespeares Comedies, Histories, & Tragedies […] (First Folio), London: […] Isaac Iaggard, and Ed[ward] Blount, published 1623, →OCLC, [Act III, scene iv]:

     the initiate fear that wants hard use

2. (obsolete) Begun, commenced, introduced to or in the rudiments (of), newly admitted.
   • 1744, [Edward Young], “Night the Sixth. The Infidel Reclaim’d. In Two Parts. Containing, the Nature, Proof, and Importance of Immortality. Part the First. […]”, in The Complaint: Or, Night-Thoughts on Life, Death, and Immortality, London: […] R[obert] Dodsley […], →OCLC, page 6:

     To rise in science as in bliss, / Initiate in the secrets of the skies.

Further reading

• “initiate”, in Webster’s Revised Unabridged Dictionary, Springfield, Mass.: G. & C. Merriam, 1913, →OCLC.
• William Dwight Whitney, Benjamin E[li] Smith, editors (1911), “initiate”, in The Century Dictionary […], New York, N.Y.: The Century Co., →OCLC.
• “initiate”, in OneLook Dictionary Search.

Latin

Participle

initiāte

1. vocative masculine singular of initiātus